Fri, 04 Apr, 2014 12:01:33 AM Finland does not recognise capture of Crimea: Cabinet Committee FTimes-STT Report, April 4  Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen spoke at question-answer session in the Parliament on Thursday. Photo – Lehtikuva. Reaffirming Finland’s stance on the Ukraine issue, Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen on Thursday said the country was committed to the European Union.
Replying to a question of Vasemmistoliitto (Left Alliance) lawmaker Markus Mustajärvi during the prime minister’s question-answer session in parliament, Katainen said the
Ukrainian nationals should have right to self-determination.
Katainen pointed out that Finland was a democratic country that upheld human rights, rule of law and stood by its foreign policy.
He assured that day-to-day dealings with Russia were being managed and common sense was applied in accordance with the current situation.
The president will certainly be in touch with his [Russian] counterpart in case issues of significant impact on Finland rise or in situations where it is absolutely necessary for the leadership of the two nations to conduct discussions,” the premier said.
He also defended the decision to postpone the Finland-Russia economic commission meeting.
Soumen Keskusta (Centre Party) accuses Alexander Stubb, minister for European affairs and foreign trade, of “unnecessarily” weakening important economic relations.
Katainen said it was agreed that minister-level trade and economic meetings should be avoided.
The Premier further explained that the commission had been continuing its operations in a number of working groups, although he hoped that the economic commission meeting would be held sometime in autumn.
Meanwhile, the Cabinet Committee on Foreign and Security Policy on Thursday discussed the situation in Ukraine with the president. According to an official press release circulated after the discussion, Finland did not recognise the annexation of Crimea to Russia.
“It would be important that Russia takes steps to prevent further escalation of the situation,” the release said.
The meeting also observed that the situation had continued to raise concerns and it was important to respect international law, Ukraine's sovereignty and its territorial integrity.
The committee also welcomed the decision to deploy an OSCE monitoring mission in Ukraine.
The release also mentioned that efforts aiming to find a political solution must be actively continued and stressed the importance of a meaningful dialogue between Ukraine and Russia.
If Ukraine carried out social and economic reforms, Finland was ready to support them in accordance with EU decisions, the release said.
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